On The Street With The Invisible Ground.

        Across the world anarchist put together leaflets, zines, pamphlets, etc., and work towards getting them out on the street among the less informed members of society, in the hope of bring about change. Though I see a place for the "social media" avenue of communication, I still believe we abandon the paper and the street at our peril. The street is the place to meet people you have never met before, to influence that stranger, to make that new connection. The paper "thing" in your hand, transferring it to a living person, is so much more alive than sitting at a screen spouting your thoughts. So I always plug magazines, leaflets, flyers, etc.. Though no longer able to do my bit on the street as I used to, I still hunger for that human connection between me, my ideas on paper and a complete stranger.

      So here is an extract from my pick of an April zine, The Invisible Ground, that could be freely printed out and taken to the street.

Fascists ARE the State

        States uphold their own authority by maintaining a monopoly on violence. The state, through its police and military apparatuses, is considered the only actor that may legitimately commit violence. Fascism is a bargain struck between the state and certain privileged groups; that members of these groups may enact violence which is then legitimized by the state. As long as the violence serves the state’s desires and ultimately upholds its authority, the state will not interfere.
       Historically, when a state (especially capitalist states) finds its authority is in jeopardy it will commonly employ campaigns against an ideological “Other” in an attempt to reunify an increasingly skeptical population under its mythological authority and ensure its continued existence.
         20th and 21st century fascism are examples of this practice, as is the colonial concept of whiteness itself.

The myth of the Legal Society

        There are many myths that are crucial in upholding behaviors that ensure the public’s continued participation in, and identification with the nation state. Few of these myths are as pernicious as that of the Legal Society; the notion that the actions of the state are bound by a code of laws, and not simply motivated by the state’s desires.
     State atrocities committed through the police and military throughout history and in recent memory have proven the ideal of the free and legal society is a myth.
       How many lived through the evictions of Oceti Sakowin and Sacred Stone Camp? How many more watched via livestream? How many injustices must we witness before we admit that the state is limited in action only by its own ability, and driven only by its own desire!
       It doesn’t matter if we believe our actions will be considered “legal”. When the state feels threatened, legality becomes difficult to define.

Download free as a PDF HERE:here 

Visit ann arky's home at radicalglasgow.me.uk